The Genetic Epidemiology and Biostatistics Core combines the expertise in genetic analysis of the Bowman Gray School of Medicine with the experience in biostatistics in Bowman Gray and the University of Alabama, Birmingham, to facilitate collection of experimental data, data management, statistical and genetic data analysis. The goals of the Genetic Epidemiology and Biostatistics Core are to promote interdisciplinary research in the area of SLE, with a focus on measured environmental risk factors, genetic risk factors and their interaction by (1) addressing appropriate experimental designs tailored to address specific genetic hypotheses, (2) facilitating an efficient data collection procedure at each project site for data transfer, (3) developing standardized data transfer procedures to allow efficient and useful data extraction for analysis, and (4) providing state-of-the-art longitudinal statistical and genetic data analysis. The long-term goals of the Genetic Epidemiology and Biostatistics Core are to utilize genetic and epidemiologic data collect on SLE patients and their family members in order to identify genes and environmental risk factors that singly and jointly contribute to the susceptibility for SLE.